Economy refers to the human activities related with the production, distribution, exchange, and consumption of goods and services. However, its definition transformed throughout history with the activities attributed to economy. The composition of a given economy is inseparable from civilization's history and social organization, and from Earth's geography and ecology, e.g. ecoregions which represent different agricultural and resource extraction opportunities, among other factors.

Business is the social science of managing people to organize and maintain collective productivity toward accomplishing particular creative and productive goals, usually to generate profit. The etymology of "business" refers to the state of being busy, in the context of the individual as well as the community or society. In other words, to be busy is to be doing commercially viable and profitable work. The term "business" has at least three usages, depending on the scope — the general usage (above), the singular usage to refer to a particular company or corporation, and the generalized usage to refer to a particular market sector, such as "the record business," "the computer business," or "the business community" -- the community of suppliers of goods and services.

Notable exceptions to this rule include cooperative businesses and government institutions. however a more accurate definition of "means of production" would be the resources and apparatus by which products and services are created. Peru is a presidential representative democratic republic divided into 25 regions. Its geography varies from the arid plains of the coast of the Pacific Ocean to the high mountain peaks of the Andes mountain range and the tropical forests of the Amazon Basin. It is a developing country with a moderate Human Development Index score and a level of poverty of around 50%. Main economic activities include agriculture, fishing, mining and manufacturing of products such as textiles.

Peruvian economic policy has varied widely over the last decades, the government of Juan Velasco Alvarado introduced radical reforms which included an agrarian reform, the expropriation of several foreign companies, the introduction of a planning system and the creation of a large state-owned sector. These measures failed to achieve the objectives set by the regime, mainly the end of economic dependency and massive income redistribution. Despite these results, most reforms were not reversed after the fall of Velasco.

Since 1990, the Peruvian economy has undergone considerable free market reforms, from legalizing parts of the informal sector to significant privatization in the mining, electricity and telecommunications industries. Thanks to strong foreign investment and the cooperation between the Fujimori government and the IMF and World Bank, growth was strong in 1994-97 and inflation was brought under control. In 1998, El Niño's impact on agriculture, the financial crisis in Asia, and instability in Brazilian markets undercut growth. 1999 was another lean year for Peru, with the aftermath of El Niño and the Asian financial crisis working its way through the economy. Lima did manage to complete negotiations for an Extended Fund Facility with the IMF in June 1999, although it subsequently had to renegotiate the targets. Pressure on spending is growing in the run-up to the 2000 elections. Nevertheless, improved commodity prices and the recovery of the fishing sector should help drive GDP growth above the 5% mark in 2000. Peru is the largest fish market in South America with an estimated catch of at least 7,995,507 MT in 2001.